The Paradoxical Sayings of Jesus
"Give . . . & It Shall Be Given You"
Luke 6:38
In 1968 a Harvard college student by the name of Kent M. Keith wrote a booklet for student leaders entitled: The Paradoxical Commandments: Finding Meaning in a Crazy World.
The booklet turned out to be quite a sensation. Keith's list of Paradoxical Commandments have shown up on refrigerators and posters all over the world since then. An expansion of the commandments has resulted in several editions of the book in English and in many other languages.
Perhaps you've seen a list of them. The commandments are a surprisingly good-hearted encouragement to do what is right and good despite a cynical outlook on what may happen to you as a result in our crazy world.
For example, here are a few of the Paradoxical Commandments: "People are illogical, unreasonable and self-centered. Love them anyway. If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway. If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway. The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
But this summer, we're going to concentrate on someone else's Paradoxical Sayings, The Paradoxical Sayings of Jesus. The Paradoxical Sayings of Jesus are not based on what happens in a crazy world, but rather are based on what happens when a good and faithful God is ultimately in control. And what can happen is nothing less than absolutely supernatural and miraculous, completely unconventional and counter-intuitive.
Among Jesus' amazing and incredible sayings are things like these: How who loses His life will gain it. In order to be first, you must be last. In order to be great, you must be least. In order to be righteous, you must know you're a sinner. And in order to receive, you must give.
This morning we're going to focus on the last of these Paradoxical Sayings of Jesus. In order to receive, you must give. Essentially Jesus is telling us that it pays to give. It pays to give!
Jesus' most complete and concise statement of this counter-intuitive promise is found in Luke 6:38. It's in the midst of Luke's version of the Sermon on the Mount, the Sermon on the Plain--a jewel of a promise among a number of golden, stand-alone proverbs for living that each could elicit a great deal of thought and action if we had the time.
His statement in Luke 6:38 goes like this: "Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return."
Essentially what Jesus is saying is this: It pays to give! Yes, it pays to give!
The root idea is this: Give to receive. Sounds like an oxymoron doesn't it. And in the natural world, according to the kind of logic that leaves God and the supernatural out of the equation, it is absolutely self-contradictory, counter-intuitive, complete foolishness, and anti-common sense.
But that is precisely the point of so many of Jesus' paradoxical sayings. They absolutely don't make sense unless there is a loving, omnibenevolent, sovereign, all-powerful Creator-God involved. In the natural world, when we leave God and the supernatural out of the equation, this is an absolutely ridiculous statement, with no chance of being fulfilled. But Jesus predicates everything He says on the fact that there is a God who is involved with our everyday lives, who knows everything and is the ultimate provider of all things.
So, really. Give to receive. I still remember coming to certain conclusions about life when I was about three years old—the kind of conclusions that we all come to when God is not a factor in our lives. When I gave things away, I no longer had them. I lost them. When I gave, I lost. So I determined according to my selfish, sinful nature not to give much, because whatever I gave, I lost, and I lost for all time. And I suppose, that's really the way it is for most unbelievers. When you give, you lose.
But Jesus is speaking to those who follow Him. When you follow Jesus, your life is completely revolutionized, because you realize you're now living in a completely different set of circumstances governed by completely different principles. And this is one of those different principles based on the different circumstances that should change when you become a Christian, when you recognize that your life is completely dependent on a right relationship with God. When you recognize that, you give, because God commends giving, is a giver, and rewards for giving. So when you give, you don't lose, but you gain. You receive. It is indeed more blessed to give than to receive! It pays to give generously!
Now if we look at this promise more carefully, what we see is that Jesus actually gives us a command followed by a promise. The command is in the present tense. Jesus is urging us to give now. The promise is in the future tense. In other words, when you give now, you will receive later. So, carrying out this command with a promise requires faith--faith that God will eventually fulfill His promise. You give what you have now, and God will ultimately repay you later. He gives back. Yes, it's counter-intuitive, it's not what happens naturally; it's only what happens supernaturally.
It is therefore a key to experiencing the reality of our great God. If you don't experience God much, it may be because you don't give as Jesus recommends. When you give, in faith, believing that God will reward you, you give God a chance to show up in your life. You begin to experience the reality of God, because when you give, and give generously, you put God's promise to the test. If God is real, then He will ultimately reward you, and even provide for you, as well as your giving, in this life.
Now what Jesus says here is not at all a new thing, Biblically-speaking. It's the sort of promise that is repeated so often in Scripture, Old Testament and New, that you can't miss it unless you intend to. When you give, God provides. When you obey, God blesses. When you keep His commands, God shows up.
The basis for this promise is found in Deuteronomy 8. Moses is preparing the next generation of Israel to finally enter the Promised Land after the earlier, stiff-necked and unbelieving generation had died out. He's explaining to them why God has had them in the wilderness all these 40 years—a wilderness where there was no food and no water. He says to them, "He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD." In other words, the entire reason the nation of Israel had been in the wilderness at all was to teach the Israelites at least one lesson--that their lives did not depend on food alone, but on every decree that came from the mouth of the Lord. In other words, God was able to provide for two million people in a desolate wasteland where there was no food or water for 40 years. How? Because Moses prayed, and if need be, God brought water of a rock. And He repeatedly brought manna, food, out of the clear blue sky—well, out of the clear, black sky, because it always fell at night. But the lesson therefore is this: Our lives do not depend on the jobs we have; our lives do not depend on money or the food we possess, but our lives depend ultimately and completely on the Lord our God and His will to sustain our lives by what He provides.
The lesson then that Israel and you and I must learn is that the blessing which sustains life is dependent on God, and not on what we have or what we do, or any other circumstance. And therefore, the blessing that sustains our lives is not dependent on what we can do or what we have through our own efforts, but it is ultimately dependent on the blessing that comes from trusting and obeying our God.
And so when we realize this, the notion that when we give, and give generously, the notion that God will bless, and bless abundantly suddenly makes a world of sense, if we are willing to believe it.
And what Jesus says here is just a repetition of what had been repeatedly stated in the Old Testament and would be repeated by others in the New Testament: "Honor the LORD from your wealth And from the first of all your produce; so your barns will be filled with plenty
And your vats will overflow with new wine." (Proverbs 3:9-10). "The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered." (Proverbs 11:25). "He who is generous will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor." (Proverbs 22:9). "'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the LORD of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows'" (Malachi 3:9-10). And II Corinthians 9:11: "You will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God."
And Philippians 4:19 which is given in the context of the Philippians' giving to Paul: "And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus."
And so we see that even though this verse seems to be a paradoxical statement to the natural man, it is simply the consistent teaching of the Word of God about what happens when we obey our supernatural Creator-God who provides all good things for us to enjoy.
But more than this: This is a promise of the Lord Jesus Christ—our Savior and Lord. This is a promise that is as good as John 3:16. So if you're believing in Jesus Christ for eternal life, then you can trust Him as well for the provision for your physical and temporal life.
So the question is this morning, do you believe Him—do you really believe Him, that when you give, and when you give generously, He will see to that it you receive abundantly? If you do, when you give, you will give generously. You won't be giving a mere token of your income on Sundays, but you will be giving generously and substantially to His Work, because you'll know whatever you have comes as a blessing from Him, and He will especially bless you for what you give.
So Jesus says, Give and it shall be given to you—and then He describes just exactly how it will be given to you: He says, "They"--an indefinite "they" for whoever will be the agent of what God ultimately provides: "They will give to a good measure, pressed down and running over." In the ancient Middle East, people wore robes that had a fold in their lap. Jesus is picturing someone who has given now being overwhelmed by what is poured out in the fold of their lap in return—a heavy, solid, incredibly generous, even overflowing gift of grain, or whatever, that would be returned to the giver—too much for him or her to even handle!
Now I believe all God's Words, all Jesus' Words are carefully chosen for effect. And guess who Jesus is aiming these words at--the person who is not inclined to believe. The person who is fearing that somehow God is going to cheat Him--that what He gives God will not return in the same measure or proportion that he's given it.
Essentially what Jesus is saying is our second point this morning: Give and God won't cheat you. Give and you won't be disappointed with what you receive.
Now Jesus is speaking from the perspective of an agricultural economy. What was given and what was received often came in the form of agricultural products, like grain. And He's saying when God repays you, He's not going to cheat you. You are going to get a good measure in return, a very good measure. That grain is going to be pressed down, shaken together. Its volume is not going to be deceptive. It will be solid. Because you are going to get the full value of whatever is given.
We can identify with this when we consider some of the deceptive packaging that goes on today in our grocery stores. When prices go up, for instance, on a box of cereal, the size of the cereal box doesn't always decline, but what's in it might. The box that once held 16 ounces of cereal now contains only 12 ounces, but you're paying the same price. Or in the case of a jar of peanut butter, they simply remove the larger container, and sell a smaller container for the same price, hoping you won't notice that you're getting less but paying the same. Jesus is saying that's not the way God works. When He rewards you for being generous, he's not going to cheat you. You're going to get back every bit of what you've given.
And then some.
That's our third point this morning. And it's found in the next phrase. Essentially He's saying, Give generously and you'll receive abundantly. Give generously and you'll receive abundantly.
Jesus says not only will what you receive be poured into your lap and it will be pressed down and shaken together, more than that, it will be overflowing, it will be running over. God is a generous God; He is after all the Creator, the owner and provider of all things. There is no lack with God, and when we are generous with Him by giving to His Work and to others, He will be generous in return. He will give beyond what we have given.
Now let me be clear here. I am not preaching a prosperity theology here. Jesus is not teaching us to give in order to get. He's teaching us to give in order to get in order to give. The idea is that when we are faithful with God's material resources, He can then entrust us with them because He knows we will be faithful to distribute His resources for His purposes to His ministers and ministries.
So give generously to receive abundantly, to give again!
The principle reminds me of a conversation I recently had with a very neat lady who is part of our church. And in the midst of the conversation she casually mentioned that in a class she had recently been a part of that I had only encouraged people to tithe—that is give a full 10% of their income to the church. She wasn’t being critical, she just had a question. She thought that you were supposed to give until it hurt. And this is a lady who gives in exactly that fashion.
Well, for the first time in my 30 years of ministry I found myself feeling apologetic about not asking people to give enough. So I tried to explain to her that most people don’t even tithe—that is when they give, they give substantially less than 10 percent of their income. And that I was just trying to encourage them to take the next big step in giving.
So she replied that she and her husband had just found it to be so true that God blesses when you give sacrificially, when you give beyond a tithe, when you give beyond what you're comfortable with. And as I thought about it, both she and her husband were extremely successful in their business careers. They obviously don’t lack anything—they have all kinds of things and own multiple properties. And it was obvious that God had provided abundantly for them because they had given sacrificially.
And you know, what she said, rather than what I taught is what is really true. When you give sacrificially or until it hurts God absolutely promised to provide. Now you’re not to give to get, but give to get to give. And this is the testimony not only of Jesus here, but of Scripture throughout the Bible.
And the reverse is true as well. If you give sparingly, the Bible says you’ll be blessed sparingly. Where does it say that? The Apostle Paul specifically says it in the context of an extra benevolent offering that was being taken in the Church at Corinth for the persecuted church in Jerusalem. In other words, in II Corinthians, he’s talking about giving above and beyond whatever these people were already giving to their own church. And he encouraged the Corinthians to give generously with this statement: “Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written,
“HE SCATTERED ABROAD, HE GAVE TO THE POOR,
HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURES FOREVER.”
Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God.
In other words, the Apostle Paul says that the reason that some of us may not be so blessed financially is because we don’t give so generously. That our income may begin to match the poverty exhibited in our giving.
Now let me remind you that we are talking about the very promises of Jesus Christ Himself here in Luke 6:38. And if we can believe Him about John 3:16, that whoever believes in Him has eternal life, then why can’t we believe Him about this? If you really want to experience God, and the blessing of God, then begin to sow generously and you will also reap generously. And on this very subject, when God confronted the Jews in the book of Malachi for their lack of giving, He invited them to test Him with regard to His promise that if they began to be faithful in their tithes and offerings, to see whether He would not open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessings so great that that would have trouble containing it. It’s the only place in the Bible in which we are invited to test God—and that test has to do being very generous of our giving.
Now I have more than tithed for years. As I have mentioned, I have tithed when it appeared there was absolutely no visible means of support, and given beyond that, and have never missed a meal or a mortgage payment. But frankly, I am so encouraged and even convicted by this promise of Jesus, the experience of many people I know and my conversation with this lady in our church that this morning, I decided to add a couple hundred dollars to my offering. In other words, I’m willing to put my money where my mouth is. I’m willing to trust God as my ultimate source of income rather than my bank account or my employer.
You know why—because Jesus’ Word never falls to the ground. He’s always faithful to His Word. I’m banking my eternal life on that. And so I’m banking my physical and temporary life on it as well. And He says it pays to give—that it pays abundantly. So I’m going to sow more generously so I reap more generously. I’m going to take Jesus up on His promise that when you give, it shall be given you, and God’s not going to cheat anybody—they're going to get a full and overflowing blessing in proportion to what they give.
Because God is in control, and His Word never falls to the ground.
And this morning, I hope you’ll do the same. That you’ll stop basing what you give on what’s left in your account and you’ll start giving on the basis of faith—faith in the very promises of Jesus that if you want to be greatly blessed, you’ll give generously, even beyond a tithe—because that’s the testimony of the Word of God.
